Here's the translated original source of the China Space News article that's been quoted in various places.
Revelations from the India-Pakistan Aerial Conflict
Source: China Space News | Date: May 13, 2025
Recently, India and Pakistan engaged in a brief but intense military clash, reigniting global attention on the evolution of modern warfare. Observing the performance of both militaries—along with insights from recent localized conflicts worldwide—reveals a key trend: the shift from traditional firepower-centric confrontations to a more systemized, intelligent, and asymmetric form of warfare.
In modern warfare, stand-off strikes—attacks launched from outside enemy defensive ranges—have become increasingly crucial. These tactics aim to minimize risk to one’s own forces and rely heavily on the seamless integration of intelligence, command, and strike capabilities. Specifically in air combat, traditional dogfighting within visual range is no longer the dominant mode of engagement. Instead, the outcome now hinges on the integrated performance of aircraft, radar, and missile systems.
Traditionally, air combat followed an "A-shoots-A-guides" model: a fighter jet independently searches for, tracks, and engages enemy aircraft, guiding the missile until impact. With technological advances, some air forces have adopted "A-shoots-B-guides" capabilities—where one aircraft fires a missile and another provides mid-course guidance. In this recent conflict, the Pakistan Air Force demonstrated a more advanced system: "A-locks, B-shoots, C-guides". In this model, an integrated air-ground defense system first locks onto the enemy, transmitting targeting data to airborne platforms like fighter jets. These fighters then launch missiles from distances exceeding 100 km. Airborne early warning aircraft or other fighters continue to guide the missiles until they strike their targets. This "detect first, fire first" model of beyond-visual-range engagement transforms air combat into information warfare, fundamentally overturning traditional air combat doctrines.
From another perspective, some countries’ modernization paths overly prioritize equipment procurement at the expense of system integration. Their arsenals include a mix of aircraft, early warning planes, and air defense systems from various nations—each with different specifications. Integrating these into a single cohesive system is fraught with difficulties. India, for example, has repeatedly reported data link compatibility issues between its early warning aircraft, ground-based radars, and fighters. In modern air combat, even a one-second delay in situational awareness can cost an aircraft.
Observers believe Pakistan has established a preliminary air-ground integrated combat system, which allowed it to suppress India’s numerical air superiority using low-cost, high-precision strikes. Unless India accelerates efforts toward indigenous equipment development, standardized data links, and improvements in training and logistics, it risks falling further behind in future systemic warfare.
Under this systemic combat framework, drones are expected to play a larger role in air warfare. For instance, with comprehensive intelligence support, drones can exploit blind spots in traditional air defense by flying at low or ultra-low altitudes, transmitting real-time images and videos, and attacking ground infrastructure like runways and hangars under operator control. Additionally, drones could serve as aerial platforms for air-to-air missile launches, increasing strike range and enhancing the density and effectiveness of firepower.
In modern warfare—including air combat—there is no longer a single "silver bullet" or wonder weapon. Pure hardware superiority is no longer enough to determine the outcome of battles. Victory lies in the deep integration of intelligence, command, firepower, and electronic systems.
Source: WeChat Official Account of China Space News
Written by: Lin Xi
Edited by: Jin Qing
Revelations from the India-Pakistan Aerial Conflict
Source: China Space News | Date: May 13, 2025
Recently, India and Pakistan engaged in a brief but intense military clash, reigniting global attention on the evolution of modern warfare. Observing the performance of both militaries—along with insights from recent localized conflicts worldwide—reveals a key trend: the shift from traditional firepower-centric confrontations to a more systemized, intelligent, and asymmetric form of warfare.
In modern warfare, stand-off strikes—attacks launched from outside enemy defensive ranges—have become increasingly crucial. These tactics aim to minimize risk to one’s own forces and rely heavily on the seamless integration of intelligence, command, and strike capabilities. Specifically in air combat, traditional dogfighting within visual range is no longer the dominant mode of engagement. Instead, the outcome now hinges on the integrated performance of aircraft, radar, and missile systems.
Traditionally, air combat followed an "A-shoots-A-guides" model: a fighter jet independently searches for, tracks, and engages enemy aircraft, guiding the missile until impact. With technological advances, some air forces have adopted "A-shoots-B-guides" capabilities—where one aircraft fires a missile and another provides mid-course guidance. In this recent conflict, the Pakistan Air Force demonstrated a more advanced system: "A-locks, B-shoots, C-guides". In this model, an integrated air-ground defense system first locks onto the enemy, transmitting targeting data to airborne platforms like fighter jets. These fighters then launch missiles from distances exceeding 100 km. Airborne early warning aircraft or other fighters continue to guide the missiles until they strike their targets. This "detect first, fire first" model of beyond-visual-range engagement transforms air combat into information warfare, fundamentally overturning traditional air combat doctrines.
From another perspective, some countries’ modernization paths overly prioritize equipment procurement at the expense of system integration. Their arsenals include a mix of aircraft, early warning planes, and air defense systems from various nations—each with different specifications. Integrating these into a single cohesive system is fraught with difficulties. India, for example, has repeatedly reported data link compatibility issues between its early warning aircraft, ground-based radars, and fighters. In modern air combat, even a one-second delay in situational awareness can cost an aircraft.
Observers believe Pakistan has established a preliminary air-ground integrated combat system, which allowed it to suppress India’s numerical air superiority using low-cost, high-precision strikes. Unless India accelerates efforts toward indigenous equipment development, standardized data links, and improvements in training and logistics, it risks falling further behind in future systemic warfare.
Under this systemic combat framework, drones are expected to play a larger role in air warfare. For instance, with comprehensive intelligence support, drones can exploit blind spots in traditional air defense by flying at low or ultra-low altitudes, transmitting real-time images and videos, and attacking ground infrastructure like runways and hangars under operator control. Additionally, drones could serve as aerial platforms for air-to-air missile launches, increasing strike range and enhancing the density and effectiveness of firepower.
In modern warfare—including air combat—there is no longer a single "silver bullet" or wonder weapon. Pure hardware superiority is no longer enough to determine the outcome of battles. Victory lies in the deep integration of intelligence, command, firepower, and electronic systems.
Source: WeChat Official Account of China Space News
Written by: Lin Xi
Edited by: Jin Qing
